Ron Smith

Ron Smith is a well-known authority in the hvacr
business with more than 45 years of experience as a contractor, franchisor,
consolidator, and consultant. He is the author of HVAC Spells Wealth and HVAC Light Commercial Service
Agreements.

Effective Management Meetings

Three Distinct Roles Define the Effective Company President

The following is a unique approach on how you can address the challenge of working in your business versus on your business. Company size does not matter, as this approach will work whether your company is small, medium, large or huge.
View article.

Residential Service Agreements, Part 2

Start with a structured and organized approach. Make sure all owners buy into the program, your technicians are well-trained in performing quality precision tune-ups, and a process is established to support the inside sales team as well as a fair pricing strategy. View article.

What’s Your Post- Recession Strategy?

What initiatives did you take to combat the recession, and — just as important — how will those initiatives affect your ongoing management decisions as the economy improves?View article.

You Win Some, You Lose Some

It’s Better To Be a Leader Than a Manager

For nearly 30 years I have rarely used the word manager, preferring to use the term leader. View article.

Communicate Effectively with 3 Types of Regular Meetings

Having a disciplined process ensures transfer of vital information and reserves time to celebrate, coach, and encourage.View article.

Responding to Your Customers' 'New Attitude'

Now is the time to incorporate or improve upon these ten practices.View article.

Light Commercial Service and Service Agreements Business, part 1

HVACR residential retail contractors who wish to grow their revenues and profits have a natural and synergistic diversification opportunity. With proper guidance, planning and execution, it’s not difficult to expand into the light commercial service and service agreement business.View article.

Reporting Monthly Financial Results

By using a margin contribution accounting method, you can report net profits by division and properly allocate expenses.View article.

Your Company Is Your Brand

The same elements that make your installed system unique only to your company are some of the elements that contribute to establishing and maintaining your company’s brand.View article.

New Construction and Retail Are NOT The Same

Contractors who are successful in new construction may not enjoy the same fruits in retail.View article.

How to Hire Co-Workers, Part 3

It's important that you don't create unrealistic expectations.View article.

How to Hire Co-Workers, Part 2

Dedicating time to properly hiring co-workers will ensure you only employ high performers.View article.

How To Hire Co-Workers

Recruiting is the practice of getting people interested in working for your company. Hiring is the practice of convincing people that your company is the one they should choose as their place of employment. To recruit and retain competent co-workers you must become an employer of choice. Ron Smith suggests how.View article.

Moving Beyond Sticker Price

There is more to the value of a properly engineered and carefully installed system than the initial investment. Treating the initial investment as a simple commodity is misleading. When confronted with a price objection, never leave the home without carefully explaining the four costs that make up the total cost of owning and operating an air conditioning and heating system. View article.

Putting Processes In Place

Having documented procedures empowers co-wokers and help them succeed.View article.

Converting Theory Into Practice

Building a highly profitable HVACR retail business with residential service agreements takes more than ideas, it takes proper training and execution. View article.

Residential Service Agreements, Part 1

First in a series. Experts share what they've learned about the use of residential service agreements in building a residential retail contracting business.View article.

What Are Customers Looking For?

As an hvac retailer, you must focus on these items: quality work, on-time delivery, ethical corporate behavior, and convenience. Price only becomes an issue when a company fails to provide any or all of these four items that customers want.
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Strengthen Your Management Team

What to look for and what to expect from business-services providers.View article.

A Growing HVACR Company Means Changing Challenges

From small to medium to large to huge: Which are you, and which do you wish to be?View article.

Reduce Service Callbacks With Tracking, Training

Callbacks are a serious problem that needs to be corrected. Ron Smith defines callback situations and offers solutions.View article.

Training: The Final Four Steps

Part 3 of a three-part series on how to develop a structured employee training program.View article.

Training: Place, Time, And Ideas Are Crucial

In the second of a three-part series, Ron Smith details how to create a structured employee training programView article.

Training: Management’s Greatest Responsibility

Recruiting Co-workers, Part 2

Recruiting Co-workers, Part 1 of 2

Properly staffing a company requires that you individually address six key elements: recruiting, hiring (recruiting and hiring are totally different), orientation, training, motivation, and retention. If you correctly handle each of the six, your staffing problem for now and the future will be solved.View article.

How to Motivate Co-Workers, Part 2

Reward employees through recognition, self-esteem boosts, spiffs, and career growth to increase productivity and attract new customers.View article.

How to Motivate Co-Workers, Part 1

The actions you take to motivate coworkers will enhance your efforts to create and maintain a corporate culture that fosters a pleasant, more productive work environment.View article.

Customer Care Boosts Referrals

Customer care is all about empathy and begins with hiring. You and your co-workers must treat customers or prospective customers in such a way that they sense that you are concerned about them and their comfort— not just with selling them products or services. View article.

Master These Four Elements for Happy Customers

There are four elements that customers are looking for from their hvac residential provider: on-time delivery, quality, professional behavior and convenience.View article.

How to Manage Change in Your Company

Implementing and managing change is difficult. Ron Smith offers a formula and tips for success.View article.

How to Structure the Organization Design of Your Company

A basic functional design best fits most all HVACR companies with a general manager being at the top of the chart and three leaders reporting to him or her. The three leaders representing the basic functions are sales, production (or operations) and administration.View article.

Why Have “C” Co-Workers?

How to re-evaluate your staff and trim non-performing talent.View article.